The Basics of renting in Australia as an immigrant — Is it hard?

Not only is the Australian real estate market extremely competitive (especially in the capital cities) but it is also in crisis. And if we factor in being an immigrant, then getting a property to rent becomes almost impossible.

In what way are immigrants at a disadvantage in the Australian rental market?

Let me start by saying that although it’s challenging, it is still possible. The application process for rental properties in Australia is a very stressful one. It’s kind of like applying for jobs but harder, at least in my opinion. They’d require you to give them all sorts of references that you just may not have as a newly arrived immigrant here in Australia.

These references would be from previous landlords, current employer, and personal references. Although they don’t necessarily ask for Australian references, it is highly preferred. They may not be willing to make international calls to confirm your references. Keep in mind that most rental properties have multiple applicants so they could easily go for someone ‘more appealing’.

How did we make it happen?

To give you a bit of a background, we currently live in what is considered a regional area in Queensland, we were homeowners in the Philippines, and we didn’t have Australian rental history at the start.

When we were still starting out here in Australia, we were lucky enough to have a family member that was willing to let us stay with them temporarily while we figured things out. As soon as we’ve secured employment, we started looking for a house to rent. It wasn’t easy. We got rejected by every real estate agency. That may have been because of our lack of rental history and the fact that we had just started our jobs and as casual employees at that. But luckily, we were able to secure a private rental unit that we found on Facebook marketplace. A private rental property is one that is directly managed by the landlord and without any real estate agents involved.

Is it expensive?

Different types of accommodation

• House
• Townhouse
• Unit/ apartment
• Shared accommodation
  – This would probably be the cheapest option and is most popular amongst uni students. You’d usually have a room of your own and share specific spaces of a property (kitchen, bathroom, living room etc.) with the others.
• Homestay
  – It’s an accommodation alternative where you get to live with a local family. The host family may also provide meals and support depending on your agreement.

Some accommodation may come furnished. The fee would also depend on the location of the property and what it offers. The properties may be offered for short term or long term lease.

Process

^{Research the location}

The first step would of course be to pick a location. It’s important to do a research of the suburb you’re looking at moving into before actually making the move. You can check out websites such as homely to know more about a town, what it offers, and what the residents think of it. If you’re already in Australia, it’d be a good idea to drive around the area that you’re interested in. To give you a general idea, regional areas are cheaper in comparison to the major cities but you may be able to find some affordable properties if you consider living a bit further from the CBD.

^{Look for a property}

^{Book an inspection/viewing}

There’s usually a section in the listing itself that allows you to book an inspection. You can also do so by calling or emailing the real estate agent/landlord. Most would require that you inspect the property first before you’ll be able to apply for it. If you’re overseas and therefore unable to do an inspection, try contacting the real estate agent managing the property of your interest to see what could be done.

^{Put in your application}

When preparing your rental application, make sure that all information are correct and that you have both digital and physical copies of your documents. Try to show up prepared on the day of the inspection with your forms and documents ready so you can put in an application on the spot. However, if you can’t have it ready then, you may also put in your application shortly after the viewing.

What goes in a rental application?

^{Proof of income}

Landlords/ real estate agents ask for this to try to assess your ability to afford the rental property.Some of the evidence that they may ask of you are:

• Employment history and most recent payslips
• Income statement from Centrelink or other Australian government payments (if applicable)
• Last notice of assessment from the ATO if self employed

As someone who’s just starting out on a new job in Australia, you may find it difficult to provide enough proof of income. This was the case for us when we first tried applying for rental properties. What we did when we applied for the private rental that we’re still currently renting was that we showed the landlord our bank statement to prove that we could afford to pay the rent on time. We also offered to pay a couple of months in advance.  I just want to note that, this ‘strategy’ will not always work, specially not if you’re going through a real estate agent.

^References

• Previous rental history/ references. These includes the names and contact details of your previous landlord/ real estate agent. 
  
• Personal references. You could put your family, friends, co-workers etc. in this section. A personal reference is someone who would speak to your character and is sort of like a vote of confidence that you would be a great tenant. Whenever you apply for a property, make sure that you advise your referee that they may be contacted by a real estate agent.
  
• Current employer. They may also ask for your current employer’s contact details to confirm that you do, in fact, work where you say you do.

^{Identification}

Here in Australia, we have this thing called 100 point check. It’s a personal identification system used by landlords and real estate agents before they rent out a property to a tenant. To put it simply, there are different types of identity documents which you can provide as a possible tenant such as your passport, driver’s license, 18 plus card, birth certificate, Medicare card etc. The application form will list the type as well as the number of identification documents you’ll be required to provide. Each identification card has a corresponding ‘score’. Basically, you need to complete 100 points.

^{Sign the lease (tenancy agreement)}

^Bond

A bond is the security deposit that you pay at the start of your lease. It’s usually for the amount of 4-6 months worth of rent. You should receive a receipt for this. The bond is there to protect the owner of the property from things such as damages to the house or unpaid rent. This is why it’s important to carefully inspect the property for any damages and inform the real estate agent/landlord about it before you move in. I suggest taking pictures.

There would also be a condition report which basically details the condition of the property before you move in, make sure you check this against the property so you won’t have to lose your deposit. Also, it’s important to do a ‘bond clean’ when you move out because you can also lose some of your bond over something as small as fans that are ‘not clean enough’. If the property is furnished, there would be an inventory list and if there’s anything missing at the end of your lease, costs may be taken from your bond.

Read more about your rights and responsibilities as a tenant on the residential tenancies authority’s website. 

Disclaimer All content and information in this post is for purposes of sharing my experiences only, does not constitute professional advice and does not establish any kind of professional-client relationship.

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